


Making a Home

by sebastian2017



Category: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)
Genre: Acting Out, Disney movies (so many disney movies), Eggsy is 8, Gen, James is a rockstar with them, M/M, Merlin is shit with kids, Roxy is 7, Therapy Dog, adoptive families, allusions to/mentions of abuse, roxwin siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-05-27
Packaged: 2018-05-12 14:38:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 21,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5669587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sebastian2017/pseuds/sebastian2017
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eggsy calls the number on the back of his medal when one of Dean's fits leaves him orphaned. It's left up to Merlin to find an appropriate foster family for Eggsy, but those plans are thrown off course when James volunteers his family for the task. It doesn't take long to realize that getting Eggsy to adjust to a new family isn't as simple a task as they'd hoped.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Orphaned

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Maries1993](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maries1993/gifts).



> I love Michelle and it makes me a little sad to sort of decrease her to a plot point for this fic, so expect a Michelle-heavy fic at some point in the future to ease my guilt :P 
> 
> TW for this chapter: Dean's abuse plays a heavy role in the first half of this chapter and Merlin hears it on the other end of Eggsy's call. If you'd rather not read Eggsy's call, it's just one paragraph and it's the one that starts with "My mummy told me to call this number...." It's also mentioned that Dean murdered Michelle in one of his fits, so if those are triggering or upsetting topics to read about for you, please tread with caution, my lovelies.

Lee Unwin is the last thing on Merlin’s mind as he works. Merlin hasn’t spared Lee a thought in ages. He knows Harry gave the family a medal for emergencies and he thinks he remembers Harry fussing about Lee’s widow entering into an unhealthy relationship, but as Merlin is juggling with walking Tristan through defusing a bomb and getting Kay out of a hostage situation, Lee is the very last thing Merlin would think of. And the son Lee had left behind? Well, Merlin all but forgot the boy’s existence years ago. 

When his work phone rings, Merlin seriously considers firing whoever had allowed the call to come through.  
Tristan’s just about done with the defusing, so Merlin warns him that he’ll be on his own for a few minutes before signing off the feed. He pulls the call up on his monitor and sees that he's only been patched in to spectate a call for one of Harry's medal recipients. Harry has a habit of always listing Merlin as next of kin on his forms despite Merlin's insistence not to, so Merlin's always stuck having to deal with all of Harry's calls and personal business when the man's away on business. He's just about to cut the call off, when a scared little voice comes through the line. 

"My mummy told me to call this number if there was ever a real bad emergency..." The voice, a little boy from the sound of it, falters and in the background, Merlin can hear a muffled yell in the distance. A man promising to break down a door and following that up with some rather horrific threats. The boy whimpers and contines, barely speaking above a whisper as he says, "Mummy's not gettin' up and her boyfriend's sayin' he's gonna kill me. I'm scared..."

The lad hasn't said his code words yet, but even Kingsman isn't heartless enough to just leave the boy to fend for himself when he's clearly in danger. Eliza from HR, who'd answered the call, is doing her best to soothe him and emergency services are already on their way. The boy stays on the line like he's told, but his crying is heartbreaking, even to someone as stoic as Merlin. So Merlin mutes the call and lets Eliza resolve that while tries to focus on handling Kay. Since Harry's out, he's sure he'll get called to handle the boy soon enough. As he helps Kay find an escape route, he pulls up the file Kingsman as on the Unwins. Specifically, what they have on the boy.

Gary Unwin, eight years old. His school records show a brilliant boy whose grades are quickly plummeting. That's not surprising when Merlin reads the next bit, that Gary had been a champion gymnast but was pulled out of the sport after his coach raised suspicions about all the bruises Gary came into practice with. Merlin's disappointed to know that the son of a Kingsman recruit is allowed to live in such horrid conditions. He considers calling Harry, telling him what's going on, but Harrys in deep cover. He can't be distracted at the moment. Merlin will just have to deal with the situation as he sees fit, he supposes. 

A few hours later, Merlin finds himself with a young boy in his care. Harry's file on Gary Unwin had specified that if anything were to happen to the boy, he was to be brought to Kingsman for Harry to take care of. But of course, Harry isn't here so it falls to Merlin's hands to take care of Gary. It's a daunting task and Merlin's choosing to simply ignore it for the moment and stay in his office. He's sure the nurses are taking wonderful care of Gary and he's needed at his work. He's content just hanging about his office. That is until Morgana finds out he's hiding from a recently orphaned boy and she scolds him to hell and back until he agrees to go down. 

Merlin knows computers well. He knows his agents well. He knows handling well. Children? He's never dealt with a child before. Let alone an eight year old who's mother has just been murdered. If he isn't so sure that Morgana would kill him, he'd just turn right around and go back to his office to let the nurses take care of Gary. How does one deal with a child who's likely in shock and mourning? Merlin enters the Medical area with the same fierce determination as when he begins handling missions. One of the nurses spots him and leads him over to Gary's room after warning him to be gentle.

Seated at the hospital bed is just about the saddest boy Merlin's ever seen in his life. Gary's hunched up in a corner of the hospital bed, looking as shell shocked as some agents do when they come back from a particularly hard mission. The nurses have obviously tried to make him as comfortable as possible; there's a fuzzy blanket wrapped around his too thin frame and someone rolled in a telly and put on Aladdin for the lad. Gary's staring at the screen, but it doesn't take a genius to realize that he's not really watching. Gary looks up when Merlin walks in, curling in tighter around himself and tugging the blanket closer as if to protect himself. It breaks Merlin's heart. 

"Are you... are you another one of those doctors?" Gary examines him nervously. "Can you tell me where I am?" 

Kingsman is, of course, functioning at the utmost confidentiality, but a young child's memories are easy to tamper with, so instead of hiding things, in the long run it's simpler to be honest and just wipe his memories later. So Merlin answers as close to the truth as a child can understand. "Your father used to work here. You remember that man who gave you that medal? He works here as well. He can't be here right now, so he sent me to keep an eye on you."

"Where my father died, you mean," Gary corrects in a mumble. He looks up at Merlin nervously, on the verge of tears. "Nobody will tell me nothin'. Where's Mummy? They didn't pick her up when they brought me here. She was sleepin'. Just sleepin'."

Merlin sighs. He wishes somebody had told him he'd be the one delivering this news to Gary. "Your mother... I'm afraid she's passed away, lad. Your stepfather's been apprehended for it and he'll go away for a very, very long time. I promise. I also promise that Kingsman will make sure you find a new family that will be very kind to you, Gary." 

Gary doesn't say anything for a moment, just stares blankly at the telly screen. Merlin isn't sure what he's meant to be doing to soothe him, he's trained to understand agent's minds, not children's. It takes a few minutes, but Gary finally speaks up again. His voice trembles as he says, "M'name's Eggsy. Not Gary. No one calls me Gary."

"Of course. My apologies. Eggsy, then," Merlin corrects. He doesn't know anything about child psychology, but it seems avoiding difficult subjects is a common characteristic in everyone. The boy will have to talk about it eventually, but Merlin is selfish enough to allow the subject change and save the tears and breakdowns for a qualified Kingsman psychologist. 

Eggsy stays quiet for a few minutes, seemingly enthralled in Aladdin and his antics. Merlin sits awkwardly for a few inutes before deciding that his job here is probably just about done. He stands up , but is quickly stopped by a horrified look from Eggsy. "Are you leavin' already? I don't wanna be alone..."  
Merlin hesitates and sits back down. "I'll stay. Of course I'll stay," he assures him. He doesn't know how to deal with children, but he knows the comfort of company during hard times. 

Eggsy lets out a relieved sigh and nods. He tugs his blanket tighter around his shoulders and lays on his side to watch Aladdin. Merlin can't help but think that Eggsy looks painfully young like this, drowning in a blanket and watching a Disney film. It's overwhelming to think of how much Eggsy must be going through. Orphaned and alone in a strange place. Merlin thinks of the agents with children and wonders if perhaps one of them could assist in making Eggsy comfortable for the duration of his stay here. Merlin grabs his tablet to begin looking through the agents' files. 

"Am I gonna be like Aladdin now that I don't have no parents? Wanderin' about the streets and stealin'?" Eggsy looks over at him fearfully. 

"Of course not, lad," Merlin assures him. "We're going to find you a new family to move in with. One that will adopt you."

It's the last thing Merlin had expected, but Eggsy actually looks more scared now. In a tiny voice, he says, "I knew a couple of boys in foster care. At school. An' they were even worse off then me! Please don't send me with one of those families..." 

"I'll pick the family myself. I'll look through them and pick the nicest of them all. We won't let you go off somewhere horrible," Merlin says. He makes his best attempt at comforting, but he's more used to having to intimidate recruits or take firm charge of a mission. 

Eggsy looks distrusting but he nods. He tugs the blankets around him again and turns back to Aladdin. Every once in a while, his gaze darts nervously back to Merlin. For the lad's sake, Merlin pretends not to notice. After a while, the exhaustion finally catches up to Eggsy and the boy falls asleep. Merlin lowers the volume on the telly so Eggsy can sleep and goes to stand in the corner of the room where the room's landline is connected. Knowing Harry's schedule by heart certainly comes in handy and Merlin knows Harry should be free right about know. Long enough for at least a few minutes of conversation. Merlin dials Harry's Kingsman phone and waits a few rings. 

"You'd best have a good reason for interrupting the few hours of time to myself I have," Harry says as he answers. 

"Lee Unwin's son is here at Kingsman," Merlin answers simply. "His mother's been murdered and he was brought to the estate under the request you'd written on his record. But since you've gone off, it's fallen into my hands, thank you very much. Can I count on you to wrap up as soon as possible and come to HQ to handle this?

Children are not exactly my area of expertise."

Harry's quiet for a long moment. The only reason Merlin knows Harry's still on the line is the distant ambiance of bombings and gun shots of a war torn country. Harry actually sounds scared when he answers, a rare tone in the agent's voice. "He's there right now? An orphan? Fuck, Merlin, that's a rough situation." 

"No shit, Harry. When will you be home?"

“I’ll be there as soon as I can manage it. Keep an eye on him for me,” Harry says. “I’ve got to be on my way now, Merlin. Keep me updated.” 

Harry hangs up and Merlin is once again alone with Eggsy. At least the boy is sleeping now. It keeps him from having to think of small talk or ways to keep him entertained and distracted. Merlin considers leaving for a moment, but he doesn’t want to lose Eggsy’s trust by having him wake up to an empty room in a few hours. So Merlin dutifully takes his spot at Eggsy’s bedside. With one last pitying glance at his new charge, Merlin grabs his tablet and starts looking through families in hopes of finding one for Eggsy. 


	2. Disney Movies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy spends most of his days at Kingsman watching Disney films and playing video games, but that doesn't mean he's not still heartbroken.

Merlin falls asleep in the chair at some point. However, that doesn’t last very long and soon enough, there’s a little hand nudging at his shoulder to wake him. Merlin blinks awake and finds Eggsy hovering over him. His hair is askew and the blanket he’d been given hangs off his shoulders. Eggsy frowns and points an accusing finger to the telly. 

“Aladdin’s not playing no more,” he says. His voice quivers like it’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to him. Merlin reckons Eggsy would probably like to pretend that it is. 

Merlin runs a tired hand down his face and stands up, going over to the television and pulling the VHS tape out. “Would you like me to start it over again or find another movie for you?”

“Another!” 

Merlin ventures out of Eggsy’s hospital room to undertake the task of trying to find a children’s film somewhere at Kingsman headquarters. The nurses he asks are friendly and try to be helpful, but they can’t just materialize films out of thin air. Someone sends him up to Percival’s office and Merlin just lets himself in. He’s handled Percival enough to consider him a fond friend. 

“The nurses down at HQ said you might still have some of the Disney movies you brought in when Roxanne was hospitalized down here with the flu,” Merlin explains, going over to Percival’s desk. 

Percival looks up at him curiously before leaning down to open up his lower right hand drawer. Sure enough, there’s several tapes there. Sleeping Beauty, The Lion King, Mulan, Toy Story. Merlin’s sure Eggsy will like at least one of those. Percival hands over the four tapes and leans back in his chair. “Might I ask why you’ve taken the sudden interest in children’s movies?” 

“There’s been a bit of an incident and it seems I’ll have a young child in my care for at least a few days,” Merlin says. He purposefully doesn’t elaborate. Eggsy is meant to be in Harry’s hands and it’s his information to share. Not Merlin’s. 

Percival has been working in Kingsman long enough that he doesn’t prod for more information. “All right. Bring them back when you’re done. I need my emergency Disney movie supply. Works quite well on James as well as Roxy.” 

Merlin barks out a laugh and nods. “I’ll bring them back,” he promises. 

He goes back downstairs, ignoring a few odd looks from the staff who spot him carrying Disney movies. He’s Merlin. No one’s going to question him or think less of him from doing a few odd things. Plus, Eggsy just lights up when spots The Lion King and Merlin’s willing to put up with some curious glances to bring the lad even just a little bit of joy during such a terrible time. 

“This is my favorite movie,” Eggsy says, putting it on and sitting down. 

He hugs his blanket to his chest like a stuffed bear and Merlin wonders if perhaps they should have brought some toys or something from Eggsy’s home. He’s not sure what eight year old boys normally do to entertain themselves, other than apparently watch Disney movies. He won’t bring it up now, though. Not when Eggsy seems to be distracted for the first time. Merlin doesn’t want to risk bringing up home and having Eggsy start crying or something. He doesn’t know to handle crying children.   
Eggsy’s fine for the first bit of the movie. He tries to hide it, but Merlin notices Eggsy humming along to ‘Just Can’t Wait To Be King’. The moment is lost when Simba’s dad dies. Eggsy whimpers and covers his eyes with his blanket. He just barely peeks his eyes out to keep watching and though it’s Eggsy’s back facing Merlin, he can tell that the boy is crying. Merlin’s never had to deal with children. He doesn’t know how to soothe crying. Instead of taking a risk and possibly making it worse, Merlin just gets up and fetches a nurse to come do it instead. He feels guilty for running away, but he’s sure it’s for the best.

 

 

  
                                                                                                                    -----

 

 

Harry arrives back in London the very next day, having rushed through the rest of his mission. Everything was finished up safely, just not as cleanly or as smoothly as the work typical of a Kingsman agent. Merlin had rushed him to get home and come help with Eggsy. However, Harry's been back for two hours already, an hour and a half of which he's spent pacing along the hallway in front of Eggsy's room. He wants to go in and tell Eggsy he's there, but he's terrified of it. He doesn't know how the boy will react to seeing him. Harry's not quite sure he wants to find out. Merlin comes out to confront him when his pacing nears two hours. 

"Harry, your tracker says you've been out here two hours. Are you planning on pacing a hole into the floor or are you actually going to come in and take responsibility for the lad?" Merlin scowls at him. "I would figure you had some interest since you specified that he was to be brought here to your care instead of straight to a foster family. Or do you just love making my life more difficult?"

"I can't go in there, Merlin!" Harry exclaims. "I've practically ruined that boy's life. I took his father from him and then stood by and watched as his stepfather took away what little happiness remained in his life. I can't possibly show my face in there." 

"Really, Harry? You've just come back from conducting a handful of assasinations and this is what you decide to go into a moral uproar about? Honestly, Harry, I haven't the patience to deal with you. Not after having had to sit through hours of Disney movies because of your insistence that he be brought here. Are you coming inside or not?" Merlin doesn't get the credit he deserves for dealing with Harry when he goes into one of his moods. 

Harry hesitates before straightening out his posture, standing at attention. "I'll have my mission debriefing on your desk tomorrow afternoon. If you need any help finding a foster family for Gary, you know where to find me." 

Merlin watches Harry stride away before heading back into Eggsy's room. He's upset at Harry, of course, and he desperately wants to get Eggsy into better hands than his own, but for now he's still been placed in charge of the boy and he can't ignore that duty. He doesn't think Eggsy will take kindly to being put aside in favor of arguments between him and the overdramatic Harry Hart. 

Eggsy is just as Merlin had left him. Wrapped up in his blanket, nibling away at a bar of chocolate as Toy Story plays in the background. Eggsy looks over at him warily as Merlin takes a seat again. The boy spends a few minutes looking back and forth between Merlin and the television screen, so it's no surprise when he finally speaks up and asks what's on his mind. 

"Who were you talkin' to?" Eggsy asks quietly. Almost fearfully. 

"Just an old friend of mine," Merlin says, waving away his concerns. "Nothing you need worry yourself about."

"So... Not a social worker or somethin'? Or anyone that's gonna find me a new house?" Eggsy confirms. He's absolutely terrified at the thought of being placed in a foster home. He's heard stories and he'd rather stay far, far away from any foster family. 

Merlin shakes his head. "No, not a social worker. Not this time around, anyway. But you know we're going to find you a famly sooner rather than later, right? I'm afraid it's a necessity. You're still just a boy, Eggsy. You need looking after." 

"I know... I don't wanna go somewhere mean and scary, though. I wanna go back home..." 

Merlin is sincere in his sympathies. "I'm afraid your old home just isn't an option anymore, Eggsy. I'm sorry. I wish you could go back to your old home. I really do. But since it's not, Kingsman and I will find you a new home. It'll be handpicked. A good home."

"I'm tired of being in this room," Eggsy mumbled, reaching over to the television to pause his movie and stands up. "I wanna play with my friends at home. In the estate." Eggsy pouts in the way only eight year old boys can and walks from one corner of the room to the other. Not a very long walk, truthfully. Just a handful of steps. Even steps as short as Eggsy's. With a frustrated huff, Eggsy kicks at the wall and turns back to Merlin. "Please let me go home." 

Merlin wishes there were some way to gently explain to an eight year old that he doesn't have a home to return to. Everything he can think of saying just sounds cruel and insensitive. Merlin rubs his head with a sigh. He'd much rather be handling a mission. At least he knows how to deal with agents. Children, not so much. "What if I get you out of your room for a wee bit? Give you a chance to stretch your legs and all that. Granted, you may just be going from this room up to my office, but it'll be a change of scenery at least." 

Eggsy jumps at the chance. "Yes, please! Please. I just wanna get out of this room. I'll be good. I can behave real well when I wanna. I promise."

"I believe you. I'll talk to the nurses and see when we can get you out," Merlin promises. "I don't expect there'll be any problems. We can probably head out out of here by this afternoon."

 

 

                                                                                                      -----

 

 

  
A few hours later, Merlin finds himself with a shadow. Eggsy's been given clearance to leave the hospital room because it's not as though he was ill in the first place. Not to mention that they were already going to have a hard enough time dealing with erasing all his memories of HQ's medical bay. What will adding a few hours of freedom do? At least it'll make Eggsy happy. 

And he is. Eggsy's been noticeably more cheerful since he's been let out of his room. Kingsman doesn't have babysitters on site to supervise the boy while he wanders and plays, so instead Eggsy's stuck at Merlin's side. Which consequently means Eggsy's more or less confined to Merlin's office. Eggsy doesn't seem to mind, though. He's having far more fun than he'd been while watching Disney movies on repeat in his hospital room.

Eggsy's set himself up in a corner of Merlin's office, with blankets, pillows, and someone in his department had even managed to find a Playstation and a portable screen for Eggsy to play with. For the most part, Eggsy is content to play to play his video games, but every once in a while, he'll put his game on pause and wander over to Merlin's side. 

"What're you doing?" he asks, trying to make sense of the many screens open on Merlin's monitor. 

Merlin minimizes them all before Eggsy can get a clear view, leaving it on the Kingsman logo of his background. "Nothing you should be snooping through, lad."

"Huh." Eggsy pauses for half a beat as he looks at Merlin suspiciously. "I asked one of the nurses if this is where James Bond works. She said no, but I'm pretty sure she was lyin'. Are you James Bond?"

Merlin laughs and shakes his head. "No. I'm most certainly not James Bond. And she wasn't lying. James Bond doesn't work here." 

"If you say so," Eggsy says, eyeing him. "If James Bond did work here, would you tell me? Would you take me to him? I wish I knew James Bond. If I did... I think I'd probably stick him on Dean an' see if he's as much of a bully to Bond as he is to everyone else. I hope so, 'cause Bond could totally kick his arse for me. An'... an' for my Mum."

Merlin casts a sympathetic glance towards him. "Dean will be locked away for a very, very long time for what he did, Eggsy. Probably the rest of his life. Don't worry." 

"My mum don't get a rest of her life 'cause of him," Eggsy grumbles darkly. "He don't deserve a jail cell forever. He deserves James Bond." 

Merlin decides it's probably best to change the topic and get Eggsy's mind off thoughts of killing people and hiring hitmen. "I'm looking through potential families for you." It's not a complete lie. It's one of the many things he'd been multitasking with before Eggsy wandered over. "I'll take your thoughts into consideration. Where would you prefer to live? I could find you somewhere to stay in London or I could find a family out of the city. And what as for the size of the family? I could just as easily single out families with other children already if you'd like a playmate. Or somewhere you'll be a single child. You're very lucky, Eggsy. You'll get your say in your family." 

"They're not gonna be my family. My family's dead," Eggsy mutters, sulking back over to his Playstation so he can numb his mind with videogames and take his mind of his mother again. "I'm never gonna go home again." 

Merlin sighs and pulls up his search on where he'd left it last. It's not an easy task Harry's left him with and it's not made any easier by Eggsy refusing to cooperate. However, for now, it seems Merlin's main concern is finding a family with the patience and capacity to raise and nurture a very scared, very traumatized little boy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So just to reinforce something, Harry's not avoiding Eggsy to be an asshole, he's just a scared baby. So as you'll have noticed, Harry isn't in the list of characters in the tags. This is because that scene is about the extent of Harry in the fic. Once James comes out next chapter, it'll be more focused on Percilot, Eggsy, and Roxy than anyone else


	3. James

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James discovers Eggsy's presence at HQ.

Eggsy was supposed to only get an hour or two out of his room a day. Some time to run around, stretch his legs, maybe play on his borrowed Playstation if he felt up to it. Things didn't quite work out like that. Even Kingsman staff, with all the interrogation training they were given, weren't immune to Eggsy's puppy eyes. So of course, Eggsy used that to his advantage and now, he's spent the last two days practically living in Merllin's office. 

Eggsy's happy in his little corner most of the time. The Playstation is a luxury he'd never had before and playing silly games on it keeps him distracted from thinking about his mum and Dean. It keeps him distracted from the nurses and Merlin and the rest of Kingsman as well. He's still convinced about his theory that this is where James Bond works, but no one will confirm anything. Most of the nurses don't even interact with him for any longer than it takes to bring him his meals and check that he's all right. Eggsy gets the feeling none of them had ever had to work on a kid like him before. 

Merlin's only margianally better. Eggsy can't hold too much resent towards Merlin, since the man's let Eggsy make a home of his office for the last few days. That doesn't mean Eggsy can't be suspicious, though. And Merlin leaves him with plenty to be suspicious about. The man has been constantly fidgeting away at his computer, but whenever Eggsy takes even a step towards him, Merlin turns his monitor off or changes it to unintelligible code. 

Once, Eggsy pointed out, "All that just makes you look more suspicious, y'know?"

"Well, have you read anything off my computer?"

"'Course I haven't. You switch it off if I even breathe in its direction!" 

"Then that's a job well done by me," Merlin had said, taking a moment to look smug before shooing Eggsy back to his corner and going back to his work.  
Eggsy just gives up on trying to do some prying on Merlin. It's hopeless and there's better things to put his time towards. Like, for example, the copy of Final Fantasy he's been lent along with the Playstation. He's suspicious and curious about Merlin, but he also has the attention span of a ten year old boy. That is to say, none at all.

Once he's been distracted by the story line of the game, he all but forgets about Merlin. A few hours ago, he would have killed for a chance to go look at Merlin's computer, but now when Merlin calls him over, he just groans. 

"Gimme a second. Jus' lemme finish this boss," he insists, not bothering to look away from his game. 

"Come on, lad. The game will still be there after I'm done showing you this." 

Eggsy looks up for a moment to pull a face at Merlin, but it's just a second too long and he dies in his game. He groans and shuts the game down. He'll blame Merlin for losing, even if it makes no sense. He goes over to Merlin's desk and looks expectantly at his desktop screen. 

"I narrowed down your potential adoptive families," Merlin explains. 

There's about a handful of family names on the screen, seperated into charts detailing the rest of the families' information. He can see the parents' names, their professions, any other kids they have, their address, and even their yearly income. It's numbers bigger than Eggsy has ever even imagined in all his life, but it does little to change Eggsy's opinion. He's already decided that he hates all these families. While Eggsy's more or less come to terms with his mother's death - ~~perhaps come to terms is a bit of an exaggeration, but he's grown better at hiding his pain~~ \- it doesn't mean he's any more eager to go off to some new family. Especially not one full of rich tossers. 

He knows the type. It's the same type of people who hold onto their purses a little tighter when he steps onto the same train carriage with them, who sneer at his worn out clothing, who laugh at his accent. Eggsy doesn't doubt that living with the rich will be just the same as passing by them on the street and he doesn't even want to entertain the thought. 

Merlin has continued to talk, explaining more about the families and why he thinks Eggsy will be a good fit in their homes. Eggsy's not listening, though. He refuses to. Instead, he just shakes his head and goes back to his Playstation. He picks up the controller and continues where he left off when he'd last died. Merlin stares at him, looking something between cross and confused. 

Eggsy just shrugs. "I told you. I don't wanna go to a new family. Foster homes are horrible an' I ain't gonna find a new home anyway. My home was wherever my mum was." 

"Eggsy, you aren't even going to give it a chance? You can meet the families, even. Get to know them before making a decision. You never know. You might find that you quite like one of them," Merlin says. 

"No. I ain't gonna like 'em. None of 'em. You can drag me to one of those families against my will, but I ain't gonna like it," Eggsy maintains, scowling stubbornly.   
Merlin tries to add more to the conversation, but Eggsy pauses his game and put his controller aside simply so he can glare at Merlin until he quiets down again. Merlin sighs and nods, turning away from Eggsy and dropping the subject for the time being.

 

 

  
                                                                                                                  ------

 

 

Having to babysit a young boy in his office almost constantly means Merlin has to distribute some of his duties among the other members of his office. The biggest accomodation he's had to make is have returning agents give their debriefings to members of his supporting staff. He doesn't want any agents in the room with Eggsy. Bad enough the boy is already convinced that this is where James Bond works, they don't need to give him any more encouragement. Merlin had sent out an email to all his agents on the first day of this arrangement, letting them know that his office was off-limits and to contact Morgana or Mordred if they needed anything. Of course, emails were only useful if the agents in qustion actually read them. 

Merlin wishes he could be surprised when it's none other than James who strolls into his office one day, blissfully unaware of all the latest happenings. James is just as infamous for never checking his email as Harry is for always being late. Eggsy is fast asleep in his corner and Merlin's just waiting for one of the nurses to come up and take him back downstairs. With how obnoxiously loud James can get, though, Merlin doesn't doubt Eggsy would wake up.   
James ignores Merlin's glaring and motions to leave the room. Instead, he strolls up to his desk. "Did you miss me? I thought I'd been gone only a week, but must have been longer than that. You took in a stray while I was gone!" 

"It's only temporary, I assure you. Now, if you ever checked your work email, you'd know that my office is off limits at the moment. So off with you. Go debrief to Mordred," Merlin insists, trying to usher him out. 

"Oh, but Mordred's accent isn't as pretty as yours!" James winks cheekily at him and steps closer to Eggsy. He's about to say tease Merlin some more when he gets his first clear look at the boy. Even so young, Eggsy already looks just like his father. James recognizes him in just a moment. He turns to look at Merlin and pauses expectantly. When Merlin doesn't offer up an explanation, he asks, "What's Lee's boy doing in your office?" 

"I've been helping the nurses down in medical by looking after him for the last few days," Merlin says. "He's found himself recently orphaned, unfortunately. But right now, he's trying to sleep. So, if you wouldn't mind leaving the room?" 

Miraculously, it's one of the few times James actually listens and does what he's told. He leaves the room, but he tugs Merlin out into the hallway with him. "He's lost his mother, then? What's he doing here? Shouldn't he be with family?" 

"Doesn't have any left. I've been looking into adoptive families for him. I reckon I'll have one for him by tomorrow or the day after," Merlin explains. He claps James on the shoulder, trying to send him on his way so he can get back to his work. 

James persists. "Well, why doesn't he stay in a Kingsman family? He'll be much better off with all the doors being in one of these families opens. It's the least we owe Lee after getting him killed over a stupid fuck up." 

Merlin sighs. He knows James and Lee had been close friends during training, so he has no doubt that James is motivated more by friendship than reason. James is an amazing agent and a clever man, but he can get rather irrational at times. "Harry's still too guilt-ridden to take him, I work too many hours for a child, and no offence, James, but other than us three, no one else sees Lee as much more than an unfortunate accident in training. They won't think much of him, even if he is Lee's son." 

"Well, I wasn't thinking exactly thinking of you and Harry," James scoffs. "I meant me and Alistair! We've had Roxy for six years. I'm sure we'd do perfect with another kid in the house. I'm sure you're finding excellent families for him, but who could be better than a family you actually know?" 

Merlin looks dubious at best about the idea. " I thought Percival was more than happy with just one child? I don't think he'd take too well to your suggestion of getting another."

"Alistair loves children. And he adores having Roxy. He just likes to act like a grumpy old man sometimes." He rolls his eyes. "Trust me, it wouldn't take much to convince him to adopt a little brother for Roxy."

"Older brother," Merlin corrects. "See? You don't know anything at all about him. You don't even know his name." 

"I can learn! What's his name? And he can't be too much older than our Roxy. I remember Lee talking about him all the time in training."

"Eggsy. His name is Eggsy. And no, not too much older. Only about a year. But, James... This isn't like you'd be getting Lee back or some other ridiculous notion like that. It'd be a whole other child to take care of. A whole new set of responsibilities on top of your job and Percival's job and taking care of Roxanne." 

"I know that, Merlin. I'm not an idiot. But... Lee was my friend, Merlin. We were there for one another all through training and not spotting that grenade was just as much my mistake as everyone else's. Between Alistair and I, we have the time, resources, and space to take care of one more. Looking after his boy is the least I can do for Lee." 

James is stubborn as can be when he sets his mind to something. Everyone knows so and Merlin has had the distinct displeasure of trying to handle James through a mission after the man has made up his mind to do as he pleases and disregard his instructions. Merlin knows that he's already lost this argument. James will just keep pestering him until he agrees. Still, he has to put on at least some semblance of resistance, lest James think he can get Merlin to bend to his will every time. 

"I don't know, James. Have a talk with Percival about it when you get home. I'll sleep on it." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm aiming to update on Fridays and Mondays, but... well, this was the last chapter I had prewritten because I got ahead of myself with publishing and was really busy this last week. :P So hopefully I'll be able to get that done!


	4. Bribes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy meets James for the first time.

Eggsy's been insistent about not wanting to go to a new family. He's not sure what he'll do instead, but he knows he doesn't want a foster family. He can't be left on his own, no matter how much he wants to. He doesn't have any family to go to. There isn't even any close family friends that might offer to take him in. Eggsy briefly wonders if one of his school friends might let him move in, like a permanent sleepover. He dismisses that idea quickly, though. His friends' families are all in the estate, just like him. They don't have enough money to spare for another kid around. That only really leaves one option, but Eggsy isn't going to relent.

He'd seen how the foster kids at his school had been treated. Most of the families just saw them as a way to get another paycheck from the government. The kids Eggsy had met were ignored at best and abuse wasn't uncommon. It'd be just like going back to Dean, only worse because his mother wouldn't be around to make things marginally better. Eggsy reckons if a rich family takes him in, they won't see him as a paycheck, because it's not as though they'd need it. They'd see him as a charity case, though, or use him to flaunt to their rich friends about how selfless and kind they are. That's almost worse than just being a paycheck. Eggsy's not stupid, though. He knows that barring some strange incident, he'll wind up at a foster home whether he wants to or not. He just hopes it's not one of the worse ones. 

His time at Kingsman has been okay. Eggsy almost wishes he could just stay here indefinitely. Sure, it's been rather suspicious how much of the facilities have been kept from him and how many hushed conversations Eggsy has observed, but it's been better than the alternative of being stuck at a normal hospital or a group home. He knows from times he's heard his mother complain about their assistance that paperwork can take a long time to process through government offices sometimes. Eggsy just hopes that his paperwork will take an eternity to file so he can stay here for longer. 

It always brightens up his day when Merlin arrives, though. His brooding is forgotten and he immediately jumps up to his feet to greet the man. "Merlin! Can I go to your office now? I'm just 'bout to beat that game you lent me!" 

"Not right now, Eggsy," Merlin says, pulling up a chair to sit down next to Eggsy's bed. "There's something I want to bring to your attention."

That immediately gets Eggsy worrying. If Merlin wants to sit him down and have a serious talk with him, it probably means he's found the family he's going to ship Eggsy off to. Eggsy sits back down at the edge of his bed and looks over at Merlin, searching his face for a hint of what's to come. He finds nothing, though. He never does. Merlin's good at hiding his emotions. Good enough that it intimidates Eggsy a great deal. 

"It's nothin' bad, innit?" Eggsy asks, frowning.

"Nothing bad at all. One of our employees has expressed an interest in fostering you. I told him I'd talk it over with you and get back to him. You don't have to meet him if you don't like," Merlin assures, "but I think it'd be good for you if you did. They're a good family. You'd like them." 

Eggsy surprises Merlin by not refusing right away. He pauses for a minute as he thinks it over. He still doesn't want to go to a family, but maybe if he stays in a family Merlin knows, he'll be able to seek the man out when things inevitably go awry. It might be a lesser of the two evils. "I don't wanna, but... if I meet him, that don't mean I gotta live with him, right?"

Merlin shakes his head. "No, not at all. Like I said, you'll get a say in all of this. I just want you to meet him and his partner. At the end, you can decide whether or not to stay with them or try meeting another family." 

"Okay... I guess that's okay, then. I'll meet 'em," he decides. "Not gonna promise nothin', though." 

"Of course not. You don't have to. Just give them a chance. The man you'll be meeting today is James. He and his partner Alistair have a daughter about a year younger than you. James worked with your father, actually. That's why his initial interest came up." 

Eggsy makes a curious face as he wonders why two blokes have a daughter together, but as is usual of young boys, he quickly forgets that in favor of worrying about how he'll distract himself from his anxieties until he has to meet James. "So... can I go play that video game now?"

 

 

 

                                                                                                                       -----

 

 

 

Merlin and Eggsy come to the agreement that Eggsy will meet James as soon as he finishes up his game. It provides Egsgy with the perfect opportunity to stall for a little while longer. He's been a few hits away from beating the boss level several times, but each time, he just lets his character die so he can start again and buy himself a few more minutes. Merlin catches on after Eggsy's bought himself an extra half an hour with his method of stalling. 

"Are you planning on doing that all day long, lad?" Merllin asks. "Because James has been loitering about our break room for a while while he waits to see you. Should I just tell him you've changed your mind and don't want to meet him?" 

"No! No, no, I wanna meet him. Just... gimme a minute to finish this game," he insists. Eggsy may not want a new family, but he doesn't want to give up a chance to keep Merlin nearby. It's comforting to have a familiar face after losing so much. 

Merlin nods. "All right. Five more minutes, Eggsy. I'll call James to come down here. Try to behave, all right?" 

Eggsy nods mutely and turns his attentions back to his video game. He finishes it in just a few minutes now that he's not intentionally getting his character killed. By the time the credits are rolling, a stranger has entered the room. James, Eggsy assumes. He sets the controller aside and stands up to go shake the man's hand. He's not usually one to be polite to his elders or whatever his teachers at school are always saying he should do, but he knows his Mum would want him to be on his best behavior. 

"You must be Eggsy. I'm James," the man explains, crouching down so Eggsy doesn't have to look up at him. "Your father and I were good friends. When Merlin here told me what happened to you, well, I knew I just had to offer up my home to you. I think Lee would have liked that very much. How's that sound to you?" 

James seems friendly, all smiles and charms as he introduces himself. Almost too friendly. It sets Eggsy's nerves on high. People are only ever excessively friendly when they have something to gain. Plus, James just has the air of a man who's all too familiar with using smiles and a few well placed winks to get his way. Eggsy's good at picking out things like that on people. You don't live in the estate too long without learning a thing or two for survival's sake. 

He wipes off sweaty palms on his jeans and shrugs. "I dunno. I guess that's all right. Maybe. You ain't gonna be my new family or nothin'. I already told Merlin. I'm not gettin' a new family, 'cause my mum's my family so if I don't have her, I don't got a family. But maybe I'll live with you. I dunno." 

"Of course. I don't expect to replace your parents, Eggsy. I expect your mother and father will always have a special place in your heart, even if they're not here with you. I don't pretend to take that away, nor do I want to. I just want to help provide the best possible home for you." James nods understandingly and places a hand on Eggsy's shoulder. 

It's meant to be a comforting gesture, but Eggsy flinches away from it. He inspects James' suit with a supsicious eye and frowns. It looks more expensive than than the entire block of flats he lived in. Like the fancy suits in movies or on red carpets. Eggsy knows nobody does things without expecting some sort of reward, but James certainly doesn't look like the type that could use a government check coming regularly in the mail. That rules one possibility out, but there has to be something James gains from this. There's always something. 

"I dunno what you want, but... I'm not gonna let you parade me 'round like some charity case or somethin'," Eggsy grumbles. "So what else are you gonna get from this? Gotta be some sort of benefit for you. Always is."

"I don't expect that at all, Eggsy. Knowing that you're in adequate housing, safe and well-cared for, that's enough for me. I believe that between my partner and I, we can provide that and much more. Tell you what, Merlin's office here is quite dull," James says, ignoring Merlin's protests. "How about you and I head over to my office, we'll eat some ice cream, watch a film, get to know each other a bit more casually. You don't have to make a decision right now. I just want you to have a bit of fun. Relax a little, yeah?" 

Eggsy looks to Merlin for help, but the man just shrugs and steps back to let Eggsy decide all on his own. "Well... I dunno, offices are borin'. An' I've got my Playstation here, so this one ain't so dull." 

"Oh, no, my office is really cool. I've got a really comfortable couch on one side and one of Merlin's boys can lend me a projector and we'll put the film up on a big screen. It'll be even better than your Playstation," he promises. 

"Well... Okay, I guess. But... only for one film, okay? An' then I'm comin' right back down to Merlin." 

"Perfect. Come on, then. Let's go!" 

James stands back up and leads Eggsy out of Merlin's office. Merlin stays behind, which is scary, but Eggsy's always been brave and he'll be brave now. James tries to hold his hand as they go upstairs, but Eggsy is quick to pull it away. That's the sort of thing a parent does and he doesn't want James thinking he's a parent just yet. Hand holding also makes it harder to escape and run away, should he need to. 

The walk to James' office is swift and efficient. They make their way up there so quickly, Eggsy doesn't even have a chance to get a look at everything on their way. That's the point, he supposes. It doesn't irk him too much. Eggsy's more or less accepted that he won't get a chance to explore. Not while he's with a grownup, anyway. A few minutes later, when James is opening the door to his office and ushering him inside, Eggsy knows no more about where he's staying than he had while staying down in Merlin's office. 

James' office isn't too bad. There's a desk in one of the corners and papers strewn about like in any other office, but there's also a well-worn couch up against one of the walls and the projector's set up already. Eggsy goes to sit down in a corner, kicking his shoes off and tucking his legs in under himself. James takes his jacket off and sits down at his office chair to give Eggsy some more space and keep him comfortable. 

"I've got a few movies here, but I was thinking The Sword in the Stone. How's that sound?" James asks. He continues after Eggsy's nod. "I don't have any ice cream here in my office, obviously, but I can call someone to bring it up. I have some sweets here to tide you over, if you want it. Want some?" 

"Yes, please." 

James tosses over some chocolate bars and a pack of jelly babies, which Eggsy quickly tears open to eat. The food he's been given hasn't been hospital food type, but there hasn't been very many sweets aside from the occasional brownie. He mumbled a thank you and ate a handful of jelly beans. He's letting himself get bribed with candy and Disney films, he knows that, but Eggsy keeps telling himself that he'll hold strong despite it. Maybe if he just keeps telling himself so, he'll actually be able to hold out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally, I meant for there to be more James in this chapter and a little bit of Percy. That didn't work out, obviously. I like how it turned, though, so if anything, I'll just add a chapter or two to make up for the bits that are getting extended in the chapters. 
> 
> So, this was up to where I had written and I'll still strive to keep that up. However, because of school and both Hartwin and Merwin Secret Santa are coming up (I haven't written anything for either, so I need to do that! x_x) they may be a little behind. Just a heads up there! :)


	5. Percicle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy meets James and makes a decision as to making his new home.

It's nearly at the end of the film that Eggsy builds up the courage to ask what he's been thinking about since Merlin had told him about James. Eggsy doesn't know too many people who'd known his father. His paternal family had always been practically nonexistent, there'd been no close army buddies, and his mother's grief had never healed enough for her to be open to sharing stories about Lee. Even the smallest of things James can tell him are probably more than Eggsy's gotten before. 

"Were you... Um, were you close with my dad?" he asks. Eggsy doesn't look up at James, instead he elects to tear apart an empty chocolate bar wrapper on his lap.   
James lowers the volume on their film and nods. "We were close friends during our training. I'm sure you hear this a lot, but your father was a great man. It was a privilege to have known him." 

"Yeah. People told me that a lot right after he died. But then a few months after he died, all his friends and stuff kinda just disappeared." Eggsy shrugs. "If you two were such close friends, why'd you not come by after he died?" 

"We weren't friends for very long. Just a few months. Not long enough for him to have introduced me into his family. That along with all the responsibilities of the new job, well, I never thought of going to you and your mother," James explains. "I'm sorry. It's no excuse, but I would have offered my help if I'd known about the situation between your mother and stepfather." 

Eggsy nods. He doesn't know what to say. What he should say. He trusts that James is telling the truth. It's doubtful his mother would have accepted any help, either way. He wants to hold a grudge, but he's just so tired from grief. For all that he's complained that he doesn't want a new family, he just wants to go back to a home. The longer he spends in his hospital room, the more he's willing to settle for just about any home. He misses having friends and playing football or skipping classes. He wants to go back to his life and he has a chance for it now, albeit one he's not entirely onboard with. "Okay. I guess my Dad woulda probably understood. Mum didn't like lettin' nobody get involved between her an' Dean anyway..." 

"Still, it's no excuse. I should have done more." James hesitates and even though Eggsy's only just met him, something about the man tells him that hesitating and doubting himself is not something James does often. "I'd like a chance to right that wrong. Make things up to your father. I'm afraid I can never replace your family, but I'd like to offer you a home to form a new family in. Would you give me that chance, Eggsy?" 

He and James have only known each other for a few hours, most of which had been spent on watching The Sword in the Stone. Eggsy doesn't know him, not really. He's always been good at judging people's character. Another of the skills one acquires growing up on the estates. Despite how much he wants to say no, spit in James' face, and go back to his insitence that he doesn't want a new family, Eggsy's heart tells him that James has good intentions and he'd be a fool to pass it up. So against his initial judgement, Eggsy nods. "Yeah... Okay. I'll give it a try. I'll give it a month. But if I don't like it then, I'm packin' up an' leavin' whether ou like it or not. I don't care." 

"If you don't like it, I'll help find you another family that you do like. I promise." James grins brightly and picks up the phone on his desk. He looks ecstatic, leaving

Eggsy confused. Surely, all this joy couldn't be from getting to take him in. But James keeps smiling, even as he asks, "Do you mind if I call my husband here? He'll be so happy you said yes. He wants to meet you." 

"I'll meet him. Got to, don't I? I'm gonna be livin' wiith him soon." 

"Alistair's a sweetheart. You're going to love him. He's a bit scary looking at first, but don't let him intimidate you. I promise he's much nicer than he seems." 

That's not a very good start, but Eggsy just nods. Now that he's said yes, he's not going to back out so soon. He's going to be brave about this. He knows it's what his parents would have wanted and being scared's for babies. Eggsy's practically a man if you ask him (never mind that he still hasn't even reached double digits in his age) and there's no time for being scared when one's a man. So he'll face down Alistair, determined not to let himself get scared off. 

Besides, he has a hard time believing that anyone married to James could truly be all that scary looking. James is still grinning, going on excitedly about Eggsy's new home and all the things they'll do together as a family. Eggsy's tuned it out already, but he can definitely tell that James is acting like it's the greatest thing that's ever happened since the beginning of time. There's simply no way James' spouse can be much different. Eggsy's sure James' eagerness must rub off at some point. 

When Percival walks into the room a few minutes later, Eggsy realizes he couldn't have been more wrong. He decides he definitely prefers James' overly friendly demeanor. Eggsy's seen statues with more emotion than Percival. He doesn't seem mean, just cold. It's a stark contrast from James' constant smiles. Eggsy can't imagine how two peole like this could be in a relationship, let alone have children together. 

Percival nods in greeting at James and then goes to crouch down in front of Eggsy. He gives him a brief smile. "You're Eggsy, yes? James says you'll be becoming a part of our family. I'm Alistair. It's a pleasure to meet you," he says, reaching forward to shake his hand. 

Eggsy stares blankly at the hand and doesn't reply until Percival gives up and lowers his hand again. "Yeah. I'm gonna give the both of you a chance. Ain't promisin' nothin', though. I might hate it," he warns. "An' I ain't stickin' 'round if I do hate it." 

"Of course. I wouldn't want you to stay somewhere you're unhappy," Percival agrees. "Has James told you about our daughter?" 

"Merlin mentioned it a bit..." 

"Her name is Roxanne. She's only about a year younger than you. I'm sure she can help you grow accustomed to our home," he says. 

Eggsy doubts he'll get along well with a girl who's grown up as posh as James and Percival, but he nods. "Okay, I guess. Wait... Do I gotta move in with you today?"

Percival glances over at James, who just shrugs. It seems they haven't put much thought into some of the logistics of it all. Eggsy would voice his opinion, but he's just not sure what it is. He's anxious about having to move into a new home. Both options, moving in now or spending another day or two here with Merlin, don't make him feel any better. Moving in today would get it over with, speed up the process of giving a him a solid yes or no about whether he wants to stay with James, but is he ready for a new family yet? He's not so sure. Staying here would give him more time to grow used to the idea, but it would also draw out his anxiety. 

James makes the decision for him. "How about you come home with us, see the house, meet Roxy, and get a feel for it? If you'd like to stay overnight, we'll set up the guest room for you. If you decide you'd rather not move in right away, we'll drive you back here to Merlin." 

"Yeah, all right. I don't mind that," Eggsy nods. That's a good compromise. Get it over with, but have a way to get out should he feel overwhelmed. 

"Perfect." James grins and stands up. He immediately starts packing up his things and gets ready to leave. "Go get your things, Tair. I'll take Eggsy down to Merlin to get him ready to leave. We'll meet you at the car upstairs, yes?" 

"See you there, James," Percival agrees, standing up. He smiles down at Eggsy and then, as he walks out, falls right back into the cold, professional demeanor of when he'd walked in. Eggsy can see now why he'd been warned not to be intimidated by him. 

"C'mon, Eggsy. Let's go get your things," James says, placing a hand on Eggsy's shoulder to lead him out. 

He doesn't wiggle out of James' grip this time. Eggsy has to remind himself to be brave and keep a stiff upper lip. He misses his mother with all his heart, but he knows it's time to start moving on. He can't spend the rest of his life living in a hospital room while Merlin babysits him. Eggsy quells the anxiety and forces positive thoughts into his head as he and James go down to get his things for his new home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't remember who made the percicle pun the first time, but mad props to that person. Sorry this chapter is earlier than usual. Again, I'm aiming to get the next one up on Monday, but I have a basketball tournament this weekend, so who knows.


	6. Living Room Floor Pizza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy goes to his potential new home and gets a feel for it all.

The ride to London is the most awkward thing Eggsy's ever lived through. James is driving and Percival is in the passenger side, so Eggsy's left sitting all on his own in the backseat. No one is talking, nor attempting to start any conversations, so Percival puts some kid-friendly music on. For Percival, that translates into playing Disney soundtracks. Disney soundtracks that they must have for their daughte because it seems to be more princess movies than anything. Eggsy doesn't have the heart to tell them that he likes listening to the Wu-Tang Clan more than the Little Mermaid. 

Despite that, he can't help but hum along as he stares out the window. It's a long ride back to London. Nearly two hours. It hadn't seemed so long when Eggsy had first arrived, but he supposed losing one's mother provides an effective distraction. It gets him worrying, ever so slightly, about whether or not James and Percival meant it when they'd said they're willing to bring him back to Merlin if he doesn't like it. He can't imagine they'd really be willing to drive the two hours to London only for him to change his mind and ask them to drive another two hours back. 

Eggsy will run away if he needs to. If he doesn't want to stay, he won't, even if James and Percival don't want to drive him back. In the back of his head, he tells himself that he should probably going into this with a positive attitude, not an emergency plan. He's had too many negative experiences not to approach everything with some form of escape, though. 

His worry only increases when the car slows to a stop in front of a house. It's two stories tall, with both a front yard and a backyard, and there's a three car driveway off to the side. In the middle of London. It has to be worth more money than everything Eggsy's entire neighborhood all put together. He's almost afraid to step inside. It's probably waxed and polished, just waiting for someone like Eggsy to come and mess it all up. Eggsy sits stock still in his seat, even after James and Percival open the car door. 

"We're here, Eggsy," James says, reaching forward to grab Eggsy's bag. 

Eggsy tightens his grip on the backpack. It contains the few things he can call his own and he won't let it go even if his life depends on it. He points at the house they've pulled up in front of. "Is that where you live?" 

Percival looks over his shoulder, half expecting to see a monster on the front yard. Eggsy looks absolutely terrified. "Yes, it is," he answers. "What's wrong with it?" 

"...bit posh, innit?" Eggsy asks. It's dangerously close to being too alte to back out now, but God, Eggsy had been an idiot to think he could fit in with people like James and Percival. 

James looks over his shoulder at the house and shrugs. "A little bit, I suppose. But I promise it's just like any other house once you go inside. This is your home as much as it is ours. Or at least, it can be if you let it. Come on, lad. Get out of the car. At least give it a try." 

Eggsy finally moves out of the car, still clinging onto his backpack. He's still hesitant to take more than a handful of steps toward the house. "You're neighbors are gonna look at me funny," he mumbles. 

"Fuck the neighbors."

"James! Language," Percival scolds, shaking his head. "What James means to say, is that their opinion is irrelevant. And it's not the most cheerful towards us regardless, so if it must take an extra blow because we take in the son of an old friend, then so be it." 

"You're just sayin' that now, but you don't mean it," Eggsy grumbles under his breath. 

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Eggsy, but why don't you give us a chance to prove you wrong?" Percival suggests. 

Eggsy just sighs and lets James place a hand on his shoulder to steer him into the house. Percival unlocks the door for them. As Eggsy catches his first glimpse of the place he might call him, it's all he can do not to turn around and run away. Just as he'd suspected, the place is absolutely spotless. The floor is elegant marble, the entrance hallway has a table with some expensive looking vases on it, and there's even artwork hung up on the wall, like this house belonged to some eccentric billionaire in a tacky film. It's all Eggsy can do to keep himself from taking his shoes off. 

"Step on in, don't be afraid," James encourages. He gives him a pat on the back and closes the front door behind them. 

Eggsy goes inside slowly. "Where's your daughter?" he asks. In the entrance hallway, he sees no indication of a child living there, but when they round the corner into the living room, there's toys strewn about and drawings put up on the walls. It helps to take away from the intimidating elegance of the house, but it does little to ease up Eggsy's discomfort. 

"She's out with some school friends. Tair and I decided it'd be best to let you see the house on your own at first. Didn't want to overwhelm you," James explains. "Are you hungry? Thursays are usually Takeout Thursdays with us. You can pick out for tonight, if you want." 

"Um... Pizza is fine, I guess." Eggsy shrugs. He stays standing in the middle of the living room, scared and unsure. 

"You can sit, if you'd like," James offers. He fishes the remote control out from under one of the arm chairs and passes it to Percival. "I'm going to order the pizza. I'll be right in this room next door. Yell if you need me." 

Eggsy sits down in the middle of the living room floor, leaning back against his bag. He stares warily at Percival, still suspicious of the other man. He wonders if he'll ever not be supsicious. It sounds like it'd be wonderfully relaxing to stop worrying so much. Eggsy doesn't have that luxury, though, no mater how much he wishes he did. He's given them a chance, but that doesn't mean he has to completely let his guard down. He's on edge enough that he flinches when the telly turns on behind him. 

Percival switches the channel onto some cartoons and lowers the volume. "You don't have to look at me like I'm about to steal your things and run." 

Eggsy doesn't bother to respond. He just turns and stares at the television for a few minutes. He wouldn't be able to say what's going on. He's not paying any sort of attention to it, just using it as an excuse to ignore James and Percival for a little while. Just long enough to get a hold of his bearings again. New places, where he doesn't know his surroundings or the nooks and cranies to hide in, always throw him off for a while. He hears James come back into the room, but Percival must make some gestures at him because James doesn't try to talk to him, just goes to sit down while Eggsy pretends to watch cartoons. It's the biggest television Eggsy's ever seen in his life. Even bigger thans ome he's seen on storefronts. That alone keeps him entertained for a while. 

It isn't until the pizza arrives that Eggy turns back around to face them again. He doesn't feel too much better, only just a smidgen, but it's enough to give him a few drops of confidence. He tucks his backpack away in the corner of the living room and stands up, going out to the wallway to follow Percival around as he pays the delivery man and goes to get plates from the dining room. Percival looks comically out of place, holding a box of pizza in his fancy suit. 

"Where're we gonna eat? Here in the dinin' room?" Eggsy asks, tailing behind Percival as he walks around the kitchen. 

Percival starts to nod, but James cuts him off. "We can eat wherever you want, Eggsy. Those cartoons you were watching aren't over yet. Want to finish those while we eat?" 

Eggsy nods, grabbing a plate out of Percival's hands and running out to sit in the living room. He's only just warmed up to James and Percival's living room. He doesn't want to have to go throught he process all over again in the dining room. He's not positive yet as to how he feels about the pair, but James is definitely succeeding in bribing his way into Eggsy's good side. First candy, now pizza on the living room floor? Hell yes. 

"Don't spoil him before we've even properly adopted him," Percival grumbles under his breath, adjusting his glasses as he grabs two more plates and takes them out to the living room. He wouldn't do something as ridiculous as eat pizza on his couch for anyone but James and his children. (It's worrisome how quickly he's come to think of Eggsy as his child.) 

James and Percival let Eggsy eat his pizza in silence as cartoons play in the background. It's not as bad as it was before. The silence no longer feels hostile and unwelcoming. It's still unsure, but it's almost as though there's a tangible flicker of hope in the air. Halfway through their dinner, Eggsy even moves so he no longer has his back to James and Percival. It's small, but it's progress. None of them can choose to be picky now. They'll have to take what they can get. 

"Ain't your daughter gonna eat?" Eggsy asks when he's finishing up his third slice. It feels like forever since he's last had food that wasn't portioned and delivered on a tray by one of his nurses. 

"She's with one of her friends," Percival explains, reaching forward to blot at a grease stain Eggsy's left on the carpet. He has to hold back a scolding for being so messy. Eggsy's new and scared. They'll be time for worrying about keeping the house clean later. 

James adds, "She'll be coming home in an hour or two, though. Might not be as easy to drive you back after she's home. Would you like to stay here with us or go back with Meriln?" 

Eggsy looks down at the pizza, at the huge television playing his cartooons, thinks back to the sweets James had given him. He shouldn't be swayed by things like that, he should focus on the instincts that have kept him safe growing up on the estates. But those instincts aren't exactly warning him of much danger to begin with, and eight year old boys aren't exactly known for their strength of will. 

"Yeah. I think I will stay overnight." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my original planning, Roxy was already in, they were bros, Eggsy was going through some shit. But when I started writing, everything just went like 'fuck the plan, let's squeeze in some more Merlin'. So I've increased the amount of estimated chapters. 
> 
> Also, I'm aiming for perhaps slightly shorter, but consistent chapters. Which is why most aren't reaching that 2k+ mark. However, if you'd prefer longer, but perhaps less consistent chapters, let me know in the comments and I'll keep that in mind!


	7. Hunter and Boomer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy gets to meet not only the family dogs, but his potential new sister as well.

Percival and James are both absolutely overjoyed to hear that Eggsy's going to stay. Percival even forgets all about the grease stain on his carpet. James is ecstatic that he can give Lee's son a new home and if James is happy, Percival is happy. James excuses himself momentarily, both to take the leftover pizza to the fridge and to call Merlin and let him know of their plans. Eggsy nibbles on the leftover pizza crust and tries not to rethink his decision. 

"If you become overwhelmed, the guest room is all yours. You're welcome to retreat upstairs and be on your own," Percival says. He gives Eggsy a reassuring smile.   
Eggsy nods gratefully. "All right. Is your, um, your daughter gonna come here later?" 

"She will. She'll likely be arriving in another hour or so." Percival can see how nervous Eggsy is and all he wants it to give him a way to calm down. He remembers how scared he'd been when he'd had to go off to boarding school and Percival had already been a teenager then. An idea comes to him and he smiles at the boy as he stands up. "Do you like dogs, Eggsy?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Well, James and I have two. We took them out to the yard so you could see the house calmly, but I can bring them in now, if you'd like."   
As expected, Eggsy lights up at the offer. "There's two dogs? Of course I want to meet them! What are their names? Are they big dogs? Where are they? I wanna play with them." 

Percival chuckles softly and goes to open the backdoor. The dogs, as well behaved as they are, come bounding into the house. Their intentions are to keep running to the kitchen, to James, but they paused when they saw Eggsy. It wasn't often they had strange company. They both went to go sniff at him curiously. They were big dogs, a Boxer and a Labrador, but Eggsy just seems to take delight in how large they were. He let out a laugh as he handed pets and ear scratches to the both of them. 

"What're their names?" he asks eagerly, looking up at Percival. 

"The Boxer's Boomer and the Lab's Hunter. Boomer was actually your father's dog before he passed," Percival reveals. 

Eggsy goes from trying to distribute equal affection to the dogs to blatantly favoring Boomer as he stares at the dog in wonder. "He was my dad's? Really? How'd my dad's dog end up here in your house?" 

Percival smiles at Eggsy's excitement. "James can tell you more about that. He's the one who brought him home."

Eggsy grins and races to the kitchen to James. Both dogs followed along beside him, panting in excitement. "Is this really my Dad's dog?" 

"Indeed he is. Your father and I both had to get puppies as part of the training we did together. Hunter was mine and Boomer here was your father's. I took him in after your mother expressed to us that she didn't have the finances to take care of a dog." James crouched down to say hello to the dogs. In return, they got hair all over his suit and drool all over his face. "Would you like to go out to the yard and play with them?" 

That's where Eggsy is when Roxy gets dropped off by her friend's mother, out in the yard with the dogs. He's having a blast as he gets all muddied up and wrestles with the dogs. They're even well trained enough to play fetch with him. He'd always wanted a pet, but there hadn't been much room in his flat. Here with James and Percival there's room to spare and he's taking full advantage of that. By the time Percival calls him back inside, he's covered in dirt and grass stains. He regrets it almost immediately when he sees Roxy. She's younger than him, but even at seven, she looks intimidatingly smart and well refined. Eggsy has the urge to run off to the bathroom and wash off all the dirt and leaves his play session with Hunter and Boomer have left him with. 

Eggsy expects her to sneer and jeer at him, but instead she just smiles and leans forward to shake his hand. "Hi! I'm Roxy. Papa said you're going to be my new brother." 

"Um, yeah. I'm Eggsy. An' I might be stayin' here. Not sure yet." He wipes the dirt on his hand off on his jeans before grabbing Roxy's. He always comes back from playdates with his friends covered in sweat, grime, and mud. Roxy, however, still looks pristine and Eggsy's definitely not going to be the one to ruin that. 

"Well, Hunter and Boomer like you. They only get people that dirty when they really like them," Roxy notes, smiling. "Daddy said you've been down in the living room since you got here. My room's really big and I've got a bunch of toys. Wanna come upstairs?" 

"Yeah, sure." Eggsy nods and lets her lead him up the stairs. 

They're fast friends after that, like only young children can. Eggsy forgets all about being scared and intimidated by the new house. He's too busy playing with the incredibly expensive looking light saber replicas Roxy has in her room. By the time they're both instructed to get ready for bed, they both pout and whine about how they've only just started to play and can't they please, pretty please, have five more minutes. James and Percival are absolutely delighted to see them getting along. 

"You two can have five more minutes. Just five, though," Percival says. "And only after you've brushed your teeth and changed to your pyjamas. Eggsy, there should be a spare toothbrush in the medicine cabinet." 

It's the fastest either of them has ever brushed their teeth and gotten ready for bed. Eggsy brushes his teeth and washes his face as quickly as he can, instead of the usual melodramatic slow motion he usually employs. He goes off to the guest room to change out of his clothes. He's just about to leave the room again when he realizes that hanging about in his shirt and boxers probably won't go over as well here as it did at home or in the hospital at Kingsman. Posh family like this, they probably have proper pyjamas or something. Besides, he can't walk around in his underpants when there's a girl right next door. He may be a bit rough around the edges, but he does have some basic manners. It's just a matter of him not caring to bring them out more often than not. There's not much he can do about wearing his dirtied up shirt, but he makes sure to put his jeans back on as well so he won't be walking around half naked in a house he barely knows. 

"Damn, I'd forgotten that we didn't bring your clothes along," James comments when Eggsy comes out of the room in the same clothes he'd been wearing all day. "We'll go out shopping tomorrow. Get you a new wardrobe." 

"Don't need new clothes or nothin'. I've got a bunch of clothes back with Merlin. Just gotta bring 'em over." If there's one thing Eggsy's acutely aware of, it's that he can't make himself too much of a burden. Not if he wants to stay here. If he does, they'll probably just kick him out like Dean had wanted to for ages. 

James shrugs. "It's no problem, really. Get you a new wardobe for a fresh start here. How's that sound?" He smiled kindly at Eggsy. "We'll make a day of it. We can get some things to start decorating your room as well, if you'd like!" 

"You're better off not arguing. Papa's really stubborn," Roxy warns. "If he wants to take you out, trust me, he's going to be taking you out. Besides, we've only got four minutes left to play before bedtime. There's no time to waste arguing." 

Eggsy does as he's told and drops it so he can have a few more minutes to play with the lightsabers. He'll protest some more tomorrow when they're out shopping, for now he just nods along to James' ideas and enjoys his last few minutes. When Percival sends them off to bed, for real times time, he does so without complaint. He's exhausted anyway. It's been a long day for him. Trying to make a new family for himself has been even more daunting a task than Eggsy had expected. 

He crawls into his bed and burrows underneath the covers. It's the first time he's slept in a proper bed since his mother died. The hospital didn't count because hospital beds are always weird, no matter the circumstance. This bed is weird for entirely different reasons. Eggsy tries not to complain, even just to himself inside his head, but the complaints come to mind anyway. It's too big, too cold, too scratchy, too plain. It's a guest room. It's not meant to be lived in. It's done up in neutral colors and minimal decorations, meant to please whoever might be staying for a few days. An aunt, a father-in-law, maybe even friend. It's decidedly not aimed at an eight year old boy. 

It just makes Eggsy feel little inklings of doubt, despite being very aware that it's stupid reasons to doubt. James and Percival hadn't known days in advance that they'd be hosting a young boy. Of course their guest room is aimed at potential family guests, not potential sons. That doesn't change the unpleasant gnawing in the pit of Eggsy's stomach as he drops off to sleep in a bed that's too soft, too wide, too strange, too... not his. Maybe he will take James up on that offer to decorate the room. Maybe that's the last bit missing before he can truly adjust to this new family. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ngl I really overestimated myself when I started this fic. Basketball practice has me basically coming home, eating, and dropping off to sleep. But I'm gonna finish this, I swear. And stick as close to schedule as possible. 
> 
> This chapter was hard to write for some reason and I still don't really like it but eh. Now on to finish my Merwin Gift Exchange. Wish me luck!


	8. Adidas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not too much happens in this chapter. It's really just some fluffy filler to apologize for my absence and get myself back in the swing of things. Either way, hope you enjoy some of Eggsy being a cutie pie!

Eggsy's woken early in the morning by the smell of pancakes and bacon. He goes downstairs, in such an excited rush that he forgets to get dressed in yesterday's clothing again. He follows his nose down to the kitchen, clad in nothing but his boxers. James is at the stove with a horribly corny apron on. Percival is setting up plates at the table. It's like something out of a movie. For a moment, Eggsy just stands by the entrance and gapes at them. 

"Ah, good morning, Eggsy." Percival smiles kindly at him and pulls out a chair. "Go ahead and sit. Roxy's brushing her teeth, she'll be right down." 

"Did you make all these for us?" Eggsy asks, eyes wide and disbelieving. 

"Of course. Growing children like you and Roxy need to get food in your tummies so you can grow big and strong!" James pours out glasses of orange juice for everone and even takes the time to draw a smiley face of syrup on the pancakes. 

Michelle had always gotten him breakfast as well, but more often than not, it was just old cereal. Eggsy's astounded that James and ercival will do all of this for him. He stutters out a shy thank you and grabs his utensils to start to eat. Roxy joins them, done with her morning routine. She pulls out a chair to sit next to Eggsy, but pauses halfway through to gawk at him. 

"Gosh, you're skinny! And you're covered in bruises!" she exclaims. "Do you get into fights a lot? Papa says we're not allowed to get into fights until we're twenty. At least!" 

Eggsy fidgets self conciously and tugs his knees up to his chest. It's all the cover he has on him at the moment. "Um, no. No, I don't get into fights a lot. Jus', uh... it's nothin'. Um... yeah, no big deal." 

"Roxy! It's terribly rude to point out things like that," Percival scolds. He turns back to Eggsy. "I'm sorry, lad. Eat your breakfast. We'll go out to the shops once you're done. How's that sound?"

Eggsy nods quietly. He should eat every last bit on his plate, get a bit more meat on him. Roxy's not wrong about him being skinny. Still, he seems to have lost his appetite. He picks at his food for most of breakfast, only eating a small portion of it. James tries to encourage him to finish it all, but after a half hour of Eggsy swearing he's not hungry anymore and asking to be excused, James just gives up and lets him go upstairs to get dressed. They'll just have to fill him up with food by lunch time. 

Eggsy dresses in yesterday's clothing and goes downstairs to play with the dogs as he waits for everyone else to be ready. He doesn't expect much out oof the outing. Maybe a few new shirts, a spare pair of jeans if he's lucky, maybe he can even convince them to get him a new set of trainers. That's already stretching it far, though. It's better he doesn't get his hopes up, doesn't expect too much. It's less likely he'll be disappointed that way. 

Everyone gathered downstairs a few minutes later and they piled into a car. Eggsy sat in the backseat with Roxy, though they didn't do much talking. James and Percival fall back on the same plan as last time they'd gotten Eggsy in a car: play a jumble of Disney soundtracks. Roxy's enjoying it well enough and even though Eggsy's grown exhausted with how textbook this family seems to be. It makes him feel even more messed up by comparison. Though they haven't provided any reason for Eggsy to think so, he's still convinced that they're viewing him as an annoying charity case. He feels even worse when James pulls up at the shops. The families walking around are all clean cut and wealthy, obviously so. As Eggsy steps out of the car with Roxy, he's painfully aware of how tattered his sneakers are and how worn his jeans have become. He doesn't feel like enough to be a part of this family. He doesn't even feel like he's worth making this shopping trip. 

James grins at him, seemingly unaware of Eggsy's self consciousness. "You ready? I figured we could go clothes shopping first. Get you something clean to change into. Lead the way. Pick a shop to browse and we'll follow." 

Eggsy looks around, searching desperately for some place he recognizes. It all seems to be boutiques or high class stores that Eggsy would never want to walk into.

Until finally, tucked away in a corner and almost completely hidden by bigger, posher shops, he spots a brand he recognizes. One he'd be glad to splurge. He turns to James and Percival and very shyly asks, "Can we go over to the Adidas store?" 

Despite the very obvious disdain Percival feels for the brand, he nods. "Sure. Are you sure you'll be able to find clothing there?" 

"Positive!" Eggsy grins and runs off ahead before they can stop him. James calls for him to stop running, but he only slows down just enough for them to catch up at a brisk walk. "C'mon, Adidas is my favorite!" 

James and Percival are just glad to see him in a better mood, so they let him rush ahead of them to the store. Eggsy's absolutely lit up like a child on Christmas morning and they both figure it can't be that much. Even someone as obviously enthused by the brand as Eggsy can't possibly find an entire wardrobe in the store. Percival mentions his nonchalance in passing to Roxy, who just replies with a knowing giggle as they watch Eggsy dart from rack to rack. 

They couldn't have been further from the truth. By the time they leave, James and Percival are stuck holding five bags filled to burst with clothing and three boxes of shoes. It would be a ridiculous expense if Eggsy's excitement wasn't so evident. They can spare a spree to cheer the lad up a bit. Their next stop is to a home supplies store, where Roxy immediately drags Eggsy off to the childrens' section. James and Percival go off in search of the more practical necessities as the two children explore. 

"My bedsheets are James Bond themed," Roxy informs him proudly. "At first, we were thinking of getting some princess themed ones, but then I decided a spy is way cooler than a princess." 

"Yeah, I guess that's true. Am I allowed to decorate my room however I want it?" Eggsy asks, looking through several sport themed bed sheets. 

Roxy nods. "Oh, yes. Anything at all, except for inappropriate things. But Papa is really lenient about what counts as inappropriate. So you can get basically anything you want." 

"I want these!" Eggsy exclaims, holding up some football ones with the colors and logo of his favorite team in the league. 

"Those are cool. We can get you some more toys and posters and stuff on another visit. We should go find Daddy and Papa now, though. They haven't said, yet, but they always take me out for ice cream after we go shopping. I bet today won't be any different!" Roxy grins at him and they go running off to find James and Percival once more. 

James scoffs when he catches sight of the bedsheets Eggsy's picked out. "Manchester United? Really? And here I thought my son would have better taste in football than that." 

Eggsy's chest bubbles with pride at being called son, but he hides it behind a playful glare. "They're the best bloody team in league! Who do you prefer? Lemme guess, someone like Arsenal?" 

"Yes, in fact! Being the best team is defined by more than just wins," James insists. 

"That's what losers say to make themselves feel better 'bout bein' losers," Eggsy remarks. He rolls his eyes. He can't believe how ridiculous James is, supporting Arsenal. Percival and Roxy are both exchanging tired looks, so Eggsy guesses James arguing about football is a common occurence. 

"Sure thing, kiddo." James laughs and ruffles up Eggsy's hair. "Don't worry, now that you'll be living with me, I'll be sure to teach you a thing or two about proper football. Now come on, let's get in line to ring all this up. What do you kids say to some ice cream after this?" 

Eggsy gets in line with them, grumbling dramatically about Manchester United and Arsenal the entire time. He's holding back a smile the entire time, though. He feels much more a part of the family now than he had this morning or even the previous night when he and Roxy had been playing. He has to go back to school tomorrow, a new school with new people, but Roxy will be there and James and Percival will be but a hone call away. He's sure of that now that he's opened up to trusting them a bit more. He probably won't go around calling himself a Spencer or a Morton anytime soon, but he's happy enough again that his hopes and expectations are higher than they've been in a long time. 

The problem with high hopes and expectations is that they always come crashing down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about being gone, it was a combination of school and being busy finishing up my piece for the Merwin gift exchange. However, it's my 17th birthday today and I leave for a week of vacation in Tampa tomorrow so I was in a particularly good mood which helped me get focused and crank this out! Not a lot in terms of word count and plot, but I figured a little is better than the nothing I've provided these last few weeks. Sorry again, I hope to get back to normal soon!
> 
> And next chapter will likely be longer, not to mention contain more in actually moving the plot forward.


	9. Charlie

Eggsy had moved into James and Percival's home on a Friday, leaving him Saturday and Sunday to grow more accustomed to his environment. Although his intentions are to get to know James and Percival a bit better, he really just winds up spending most of his time with Roxy. The two of them are fast friends and getting to live with someone both close to his age and willing to play with him is even funner than Eggsy could have imagined. He's in such a good mood by the end of the weekend that he readily agrees to go visit Roxy's school the next day. 

James wakes him early in the morning with a uniform in hand. Eggsy isn't sure how they'd manage to enroll him and get him his own uniforms so quickly, but it's probably the same mysterious efficiency Merlin had employed when he'd been in his hospital room. It's best not to question that. 

Desite the uniform, there's no assigned shoes or jackets, so Eggsy takes the chance to show off his new Adidas gear. His new shoes and jacket will be absolutely perfect. They're the coolest articles of clothing he's ever owned, as well as the first time in close to a year that his clothes haven't come from a second hand shop or hand-me-downs. He wishes he'd had a chance to gone to his old school with these new accesories. He would have certainly been crowned among the coolest boys in his year. 

James and Percival have them both eat their breakfast before ushering them into the backseat of the car to drive them both to school. Eggsy feels more like part of a family than he's had since Dean had moved in. When they're dropped off at school, he even gets the same embarrassing wave goodbye as Roxy. 

"Papa's always so embarrassing," Roxy mumbles to Eggsy as they walk into the school building. 

Eggsy shrugs. "I don't mind it. I actually kinda like it," he admits.

"You'll get tired of it really quickly," she promises, shaking her head. "The office is down that way. They can give you any sort of papers you need. Do you need me to take you there?" 

"Nah, it's all right. I've got it," Eggsy assures her. "I'll see you later today!" 

He heads over to the office, feeling quite happy to be in school for the first time since practically nursery school. He identifies himself to the school secretary and gets some papers to give to James and Percival later before being told to sit and wait for the student he'll be shadowing until his paperwork is processed. He has to wait a few minutes, but eventually, a boy who seems to be in his same year walks in. 

"Ah, Charlie. There you are!" The secretary gestures towards Eggsy. "This is Gary Unwin. He's new here and he'll be shadowing you until we get his schedule all worked out." 

Eggsy gets up from his seat and reaches over to shake Charlie's hand. He's perhaps a bit too eager to be starting in a new school, but he can't help it. He's just happy to have a home again. A family. School may be unpleasant, but a new school is just a sign of his new life now. "Hi, Charlie! I'm Gary, but everyone calls me Eggsy. You can call me that too." 

"I'll just leave you two boys to get acquainted with one another," the secretary says, already paying more attention to her paperwork than the boys. "Be sure to make it to homeroom in time." 

Once the secretary has turned away, Charlie makes a big show of wiping his hand off after shaking Eggsy's. "Eggy? Right..." he sneers. "Let's just hurry up and get to homeroom." 

Eggsy frowns and tries not to let it get to him. Maybe it's just Monday getting Charlie down. Or maybe he's like this with everyone. He's sure after a bit, Charlie will get friendlier to him. He follows Charlie to their homeroom and goes to sit. Charlie makes a point of sitting as far from his as possible, surrounded by a posse of his friends. Eggsy tries not to take it too personally, but he can't help but feel his day is getting off to an awful start. He'd been excited for his new school. Now? Not so much. He wishes he'd gotten placed shadowing Roxy. She's a year under him, but at least he'd have someone to talk to. 

When the bell rings, Charlie darts out to his next class without so much as a glance towards Eggsy. He has to maneuver his way around other students and speed up to catch up to Charlie. It falls into that pattern most of the morning. Charlie speeds off so Eggsy has to practically jog to keep up, then when they get to class, Charlie sits with his friends and leaves Eggsy alone in a corner. Eggsy tried to assume it was just accidents, but by the time they're heading to their fourth class of the day, it's just too much.

"I'm s'posed to go to your classes with you!" he calls out, on the off chance Charlie's forgotten. 

Charlie finally stops his speed walking and turns back to sneer at him. "I'm not your babysitter, Unwin. People like you shouldn't even be in our school." 

"...people like me?" Eggsy knows what he's referring to, but he has trouble figuring out how he'd qualify as one of 'those' kids now. He's got brand new clothes, brand new shoes, he's living in a big fancy house, and he's not even in a state school anymore. Sure, his accent might be off and his manners may be rough around the edges, but he's closer to being like Charlie than any of his old mates now. 

Charlie scowls, stepping closer to Eggsy. "We don't take charity cases here. I give you a week before you're begging to leave. You're not one of us, Unwin. No one wants you here. The sooner you learn that, the better." 

This time, Eggsy's more than happy to slink back to a corner seat when they get to class. It's a blow he hadn't been expecting. He'd thought a new school would be exciting, fun even since he's no longer the trouble-causing son of a widowed alcoholic on public assistance. He was stupid to think so. He can see that now. Now that he's looking around, he sees all his classmates have adorned their uniforms in Ralph Lauren, Versace, Burberry, but certainly not Adidas. The shoes he'd been so proud of just make him feel dumb now. Like he doesn't belong, just like Charlie said. 

In the rush and bustle of lunch, he takes his chance to sneak off school grounds. He doesn't want to be here anymore. He doesn't want to be around boys like Charlie Hesketh who remind him he doesn't belong. He thought he'd come to terms with all that had happened and with getting a new family, but apparently not. Not if he could crumble back down after just a handful of comments from someone like Charlie. He thought he was stronger than this, but the fact that he's running off and skipping school obviously proves otherwise. 

He gets to wander about the city for close to an hour before an unmarked cab pulls up next to him and lowers the window to reveal Jams sitting in the backseat. Eggsy doesn't even ask how he'd been found, he just gets into the car next to James and buckles up. They drive in silence for a while, seemingly going nowhere. They must circle around the city streets for at least an hour before James finally speaks up. 

"Why'd you leave, Eggsy?" James turned to look at him. He doesn't look mad, not even that disappointed look parents often seem to get. He just wants to know so he can work on fixing it. Eggsy still feels awful about it, though. 

"I dunno. I just shouldn't have even been there in the first place. School's like that are... they're for kids who talk all nice and got trust funds and probably drink tea with their pinkies out or somethin'," Eggsy mumbles, shrinking in on himself. "I don't belong there." 

"Is that what this is about? You don't feel like you belong there?" James asks. He frowns, leaning back to give Eggsy a good look. "You know, when I first met your father, we were in a big group where he probably felt like he didn't belong either. And you know what he did? He just-"

Eggsy cuts him off. "I don't wanna hear some story 'bout my dad an' how great he was or whatever! 'Cause that don't change nothin'. My dad coulda had tea with the fuckin' Queen at the estates or somethin' an' it wouldn't make a difference. I'm tired of hearin' 'bout how great my dad was as if that's meant to change anythin'. It won't change that I talk all funny or that I spent one day in school and already saw that I can't keep up in any classes or that there's a bunch of boys that already decided they don't like me already. So shove off tryin' to give me inspirational stories 'bout my dad or whatever. He coulda been David fuckin' Beckham an' it wouldn't change none of this shit." 

"Eggsy. Language," James scolds. He shakes his head, fiddling with the ring on his pinkie. "You're right. Stories about your dad won't change if you're unhappy and I'm sorry about that. But they're a good start, aren't they? You two weren't all that different. All I mean to do is show you it's entirely possible to ignore all those wankers and be just fine. Sod them. You have no one to worry about but yourself. So today, we'll take the rest of the day off. But tomorrow? You're going back, you're staying the whole day, and you're going to do just fine." 

Eggsy sighs. "All right. Sorry," he mumbles. "I won't run off again."

"Damn right you wont," James agrees. "Ready to go home now?" 

Eggsy just shrugs and stares out the window as they drive back home. It's just one day at school - his very first day - but it's no less discouraging. Back home, he may have faced his fair share of skepticism and kids who couldn't see past his alcoholic mother and violent stepfather, but here they don't even see that far into him. Eggsy doubts anyone here even sees anything past some hooligan from the wrong side of town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> remember the good old days when I updated regularly  
> I'm sorry guys I'm trying  
> but it's spring break so maybe now I'll have some more chance to write
> 
> anyways enjoy charlie being a dick and eggsy being sad


	10. Overdramatic Egg

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eggsy's a drama queen, he really is. But he is my eggson so it is okay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's been so long and this is so short  
> I'm sorry friends  
> I don't know what I was thinking starting a fic this semester??? RIP me

Eggsy's angry. He's angry at Dean for taking away his family. He's angry at his mother for not having left Dean. He's angry at his father for dying. He's angry at James and Alistair for putting him in a school where he doesn't fit in. He's angry at Charlie for being so mean. Most of all, though, he's just angry at himself. He has a new house, new parents with seemingly bottomless bank accounts, a better school than he'd been in before. He should be happy and thriving, but instead he's yet to make a friend other than Roxy and he wants to go back to school less and less with every passing day. 

It's been three days since the first incident with Charlie, but it's only gotten worse. Eggsy's astounded at how mean little kids can be. It's only Charlie and his friends, and they're not too many boys, but they're mean, loud, and persistent. Eggsy hasn't even been at school for that long and they'd already spread all sort of nasty rumors about him. Most of the rumors had to do with his background, not that Eggsy finds that too surprising. He's already been asked if it's true that he'd been adopted because his parents were in jail, that he'd grown up in a drug point, that he'd been to a special juvie for toddlers. Eggsy's constantly astounded at what Charlie could make these kids believe. 

With the exception of Charlie and his friends, the other kids don't do it to be mean. Eggsy's almost sure of that, anyway. He can't really blame them for being dumb. They're just living in a bubble of wealth and genuinely unsure as to whether Charlie's saying anything of truth or not. Most of Eggsy's classmates aren't trying to be mean, but that doesn't make it hurt any less. Of the four days Eggsy's been in school, he'd sneaked off on one and been sent home for fighting on another two. It's not a great start and it's growing increasingly frustrating to spend his days being absolutely miserable at school, only to come back home and receive long winded lectures from James and Percival. There's only so much of that a person can take before snapping. 

He actually manages to make it to the end of his fourth day of school and get picked up at the same time as Roxy. Charlie had been as annoying as ever, but Eggsy had held back his reactions. By the time he gets picked up, he's at no shortage of pent up anger. He'd take everyone at his school on in a fist fight if he was allowed. That's not an option, so he settles for being snippy and unpleasant the entire car ride back home. 

From some small miracle, Eggsy manages the entire car ride without a total meltdown. He makes it through dinner without incident as well. It's when he's upstairs doing his homework that he's just had enough. They'd done a paragraph for English class that day, a summary of the story they'd read in class. Eggsy had tried his hardest, he's trying his hardest in all his classes, but his teacher had given him his paragraph back with a slew of corrections, a note on the margins suggesting he use vocabulary 'more befitting of their student body', and a 'Good Try' sticker at the very top. Seeing it when he opens his notebook to make revisions is just one thing too many for him. His life has been torn upside down. He should be getting some credit for his effort, not elitist comments and condescending stickers on his classwork. 

Eggsy starts with tearing the page out of his notebook and throwing it to the other side of his room. When that's not enough, he tears out another and another and another until half his notebook is gone and scattered all across his bedroom floor. It's still not enough, so Eggsy gets up and kicks his chair away. Kicks it as hard as though it were Charlie's sneering face. He's not quite sure what his purpose is. He appreciates all the things James and Alistair have given him and he certainly doesn't want to destroy them all. But he's angry and he has nowhere to vent his anger. Back home, he could go out with some neighborhood boys in search of trouble or scuffle; let that relieve some of his stress. Here, nothing like that is an option. So he settles for destroying the things around him. 

James comes in just as Eggsy punches his mirror as hard as he can. It cracks under his fist, but it also digs shards of the glass into his knuckles. Eggsy pulls his hand back with shout and finally lets himself cry. He sits at the edge of his bed and holds his bloodied hand close to his chest as he sobbed. 

"Eggsy! Eggsy, stop! What's wrong?" James hurries over and knelt down in front of him. He tries to take Eggsy's hand to see how badly he'd hurt himself, but Eggsy just yanks it back. 

"Shove off, James!" he mutters. "Stop acting like you care. I shouldn't be here. I don't belong here. I know that. I'm not dumb!" 

"Eggsy..." James has learned enough from their previous experiences to venture carefully. "Is that what this is about? We've already talked about this." 

"Yeah an' you gave me some bad advice about just ignoring everyone else. That didn't fix anything. How does ignoring that I shouldn't be here make things better? I'm just a good for nothing waste of space." 

"Eggsy... That's not true at all," James insists gently. "You're not a waste of space and you belong here just as much as anyone else. You're our son now, Eggsy." 

"That's not true!" Eggsy snaps. He hates hearing it, hates James attempts to comfort him. He knows they're not true and having to sit through them feels like he's being taunted. "I'm not your son, I'm just some charity case you picked up to make yourself feel good." 

"That's not true at all. You're already a very special part of our family. But, buddy, if you're feeling like this, you have to say something. Not just take it out on your homework and bedroom mirror." 

Eggsy hesitates before nodding. "Kay... I'm sorry, James," he mumbles. "I just... I hate my school. Everyone hates me there! There's a group of boys spreading all sorts of lies 'bout me and no one wants to be my friend." 

"You have Roxy, no?" 

"Roxy's in another year! We don't have any of the same classes together. We don't even have lunch at the same time!" 

James sighs. "All right. Alistair and I will look into it. How's this for a plan: we're going downstairs to fetch the first aid kid for your hand, sit down and have a real talk about this, and tomorrow, Alistair and I will go in and have a talk with your teachers about all of this. Good plan? Yes? Good. Now downstairs with us. Come on. Off we go."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> james and eggsy are bros 
> 
> JB COMES OUT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER okay yeah so hopefully you'll get some JB action not in a month? hopefully sooner? :')


	11. JB

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They adopt JB and Alistair is totally the soft parent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I !!! updated !!! in less !!! than a month !!!

The next morning, breakfast is a quiet affair. It wasn't as if Eggsy's little breakdown could be kept secret in such a small household. Especially not when James told Alistair everything and Roxy was a master eavesdropper. When James and Alistair go upstairs to lay out their clothes for the day, Roxy leans closer to Eggsy. 

"I can beat Charlie up for you. If you want," she whispers. "He's dumb as a rock. Wouldn't last a second against me." 

Eggsy can't help but laugh a bit. "No, it's okay. I'm pretty sure your dads would be really mad if you did."

"Well just so you know. The offer is there."

He nods gratefully and finishes his breakfast when James and Alistair come back downstairs. Once he's done and the dishes have been deposited in the sink, he goes back upstairs and is surprised to find his normal clothing on the bed, instead of his school uniform. He gets dressed in what was left out for him and goes downstairs to wait in the living room. 

His confusion must not be too subtle because James only takes one look at him before explaining. "You're lucky Alistair is so soft. I would have sent you in to school, but he insisted on giving you the day off." 

"Oh. Um, thanks, Alistair," Eggsy mumbles sheepishly. Alistair still intimidates him a bit, since his face seems to be naturally cold and scary, but Eggsy's come to learn that he's actually quite kind. 

"Not a problem. I was hoping the two of us could go off to run some errands while James drops Roxy off at school. How's that sound?" Alistair suggests. 

It sounds like an absolutely awful way to be spending a day off from school, but Eggsy's in no position to complain, so he nods and goes to get his jacket so he and Alistair can leave right along with James and Roxy. A few minutes later, James is driving towards school with Roxy and Alistair is driving in the other direction with Eggsy in the backseat. 

"So... Where are we gonna go first?" Eggsy asks. He hopes it's nowhere too boring. He might be able to handle grocery shopping - he could probably look cute enough to convince Alistair to buy some treats - but there's always the chance that the errand is to a bank or someplace equally horrible. 

Alistair glances up at him through the rear view mirror. "You'll see soon enough, Eggsy. A bit of patience would do you well. You could be with Roxy in school, you know." 

"I know, I know. Sorry," Eggsy mumbles. He keeps staring out the window as they drive, trying to spot anything familiar so he can figure out where they're going. Nothing seems familiar and they finally stop after an eternity of driving - a quick glance at the time will tell him that it's only been twenty minutes, but time goes by slowly with no one his age to entertain him and after James had taken away his Game Boy. He looks up at the building and sees that Alistair has brought them to an animal shelter. "Um... Alistair? What're we doin' here?" 

"We're here to get a dog, of course," Alistair says, stepping out of the car and holding Eggsy's door open for him. "What does it look like we're doing?" 

"But we already have Hunter and Boomer." Eggsy frowns. Were they getting rid of one of the dogs? His father's maybe? He hopes not, but with his luck, they were probably getting rid of the poor pup as punishment for his tantrum yesterday. 

Alistair leads him towards the entrance with a steady hand on his shoulder. "Well, we're getting another. We have the space for it and I think it would do you good. When I was a lad, my parents gave me a dog. Taught me a fair deal of responsibility and I always knew that I'd have a friend to turn to if things got hard to deal with." 

 

"...so you're gettin' me a dog 'cause you think I'm irresponsible?" Eggsy frowns. That didn't make him feel too much better.

"No. We're getting you a dog because you're going through a rather rough time right now and I think it would do you well," Alistair explains. 

They're led to the animals in the back and to a section in the back full of overexcited, trembling little puppies. As soon as Eggsy steps into the fenced off area, they're all crowding around him. His shoes are going to get mud on them, he can already tell, but it's hard to be mad when he's surrounded by a dozen puppies, all clamoring for a belly rub or a scratch behind the ears. Eggsy wishes he could take them all home. He crouches down to be able to pet them with more ease and the pups immediately climb all over him to lick at his chin. 

"They're a bit wild now, but whichever one we pick, we can train so they'll be extra good at cheering you up when you're sad," Alistair explains. He steps inside with Eggsy, apparently willing to sacrifice his suit to get a chance at playing with the pups. He picks up a particularly adventurous chocolate Lab puppy and inspects her with an approving hum. "This is a good breed," he suggests, passing her over to Eggsy. "Friendly, loyal, easily trained. It's your choice, of course, but that's the first one to catch my eye." 

Eggsy's overwhelmed by all the puppies, but he spots a tiny little pug trying to fight his way to the top of the pile. Eggsy picks him up and the pup immediately slobbers all over Eggsy's chin. The boy's instantly in love. "This one!" he announces, standing up with the pug in his arms. "I want this one."

"This one? Are you sure?" Alistair asks. He tosses a ball towards the other end of the corral so the other puppies will run off and leave him and Eggsy alone with the pug for a moment. "He won't get to be very big." 

"It's okay. He don't have to be big. We got Hunter and Boomer for that," Eggsy assures him, standing up on tippy toes to keep scratching JB's ears as Alistair holds him. "Look at him! He's tiny and cuddly. He'll be a perfect cheerer upper, like you said." 

Alistair casts a glance over to where some of the other pups have gone to play. Another breed really would be easier to train, but if Eggsy was fond of the pug... "You really like him, huh?"

"Yeah! Please, please, please can I have him? I won't miss another day of school. Ever. I swear. Even if Charlie's being a jerk," Eggsy insists. 

Alistair stares down at the two sets of puppy eyes looking up at him and relents. He passes the pug back down to Eggsy. "All right. I suppose we can train this dog up just as well as any other. Come on, let's go get the paperwork handled. Have you thought of a name for him, yet?"

"Yeah! He's gonna be JB. After James Bond!"

After the paperwork had been done, Eggsy got to go home with an eager, squirming puppy in his lap. It's a wonder how quickly JB can cheer him up. It's not like all his problems have gone away magically or even that he feels entirely better, it's just hard to be upset when JB is licking his face and greedily searching for belly rubs. This was leaps and bounds better than going to school, that was for sure. Even when they get home, Eggsy gets to spend his time playing with JB up in his room instead of doing makeup work for school. It's no less than a hundred times better than having had to deal with Charlie yesterday. 

JB can't do any tricks yet - Eggsy had tried 'sit' and 'stay' and 'go fetch me some sweets from the kitchen' - though that's probably to be expected of a puppy they'd only just adopted that very same day. Eggsy hopes Percival was right about JB being well trained and extra cuddly whenever he got sad. It'd be cool to have a dog that he could get into shenanigans with and who wouldn't even leave after he got grounded and couldn't leave his room. 

In the early afternoon, after Eggsy's spent hours playing with JB upstairs in his room, Alistair comes up to check in on him, bearing apple slices and some chocolate milk. It's not chips and soda, like would be any little boy's preference, but Eggsy appreciates it. He takes it with a murmured thank you and has to stand up to eat without JB climbing up all over him to steal a bite. Even with the snack clearly out of reach, JB still tries climbing up on Eggsy's jeans. Eggsy laughs and eventually manages to distract JB by throwing a ball to the other side of the room. 

"Enjoying your pup?" Alistair asks, crouching down to scratch JB's ears. 

Eggsy nods eagerly. "Lots!" 

"Ready to take him out on a walk in a bit?" Alistair smirks up at him. "And clean up all his poo?" 

"Totally!" Eggsy insists. He's absolutely in love with JB already and he'd do anything for him. 

"Are you happy?"

Eggsy has to pause and think about that one for a second. He hasn't been entirely unhappy since moving into Alistair and James' house, but even at the best of moments, his mother's death had remained at the back of his head, weighing him down and making him feel guilty to do so much as smile. Right now, it really is hard to be upset with JB so chipper and friendly after only having just met him. He's not happy of the circumstances that landed him here, but... he's not entirely unhappy to be here either. After his long pause, he finally nods. 

"Yeah. I am."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So JB isn't exactly a therapy dog yet but cmon you know he'd be the best at it ever!!
> 
> Also I have an AP exam next week which is why I got this up a little faster than last time. (Not fast, mind you, but faster) Cause I'm gonna disappear for a week and a half xD Anyways, hope you enjoyed this! There's one more regular chapter left and then an epilogue. Get hyped!
> 
> (PSA: don't make decisions to adopt a puppy from one day to another. and adopt, don't shop even if you don't find a breed you think you just haaave to have! Percy does it cause well he's a fictional super spy ))


	12. Siblings/Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter!! :')

After his afternoon snack, Eggsy had moved down to the living room and didn't do much more than play with JB for the rest of the afternoon. The pup's a tiny bundle of energy and every time Eggsy thinks he's finally managed to tire JB out for good, the pug takes a nap for no more than a minute before he's up and running about again. It's hard not to love him. Even Hunter and Boomer grow fond of the thing within minutes. He's definitely having a much better time than if he'd been in school with Charlie and his cronies. When Roxy came back home from school, she finds Eggsy where he's been all day, sitting and playing with JB. 

"Roxy! Look! We have a new puppy!" Eggsy exclaims, running over with JB. JB's more than happy to meet a new human and he immediately sets on trying to lick Roxy's face. 

Roxy giggles and grabs JB from Eggsy, letting him lick her all he wanted. "Oh, he's adorable. Are we really keeping him, Daddy?" 

Alistair nodded. "He's Eggsy's, technically, but yes, he's staying." 

"Wish I'd stayed home too." Roxy pouts. 

"Some other time," Alistair promises. 

That's a reasonable agreement for Roxy and even if it wasn't, she's too distracted by JB to argue. The dog's absolutely overjoyed to be getting so much attention. He can't even decide who he wants ear scratches from. He just keeps bounding back and forth between Roxy and Eggsy, panting the entire time. It really just makes Eggsy love him even more. The kids end up covered in dog slobber before long. 

"Go and clean up for dinner, you two," James says, ushering them upstairs. "JB will be there after you've cleaned up and eaten." 

He drops them off at the bathroom where Eggsy and Roxy share a stepping stool to wash their hands and faces of JB's drool. Roxy checks to make sure James is out of earshot before turning back to Eggsy. "I know you said you didn't need me to, but I beat up Charlie for you." 

Eggsy doesn't know how to respond other than a startled, "Really?"

Roxy nods proudly. "Yeah! And Charlie's so dumb, he didn't want to tell anyone he got beat up by a girl, so he just said he fell in the playground. So I won't even get in trouble for it!" 

"That's great, Roxy. Thanks so much!" Eggsy tries to picture Charlie getting beat up by Roxy, who's smaller by far and younger than him by a whole year, and all he can do is laugh. 

"You're my brother now. Family protects each other."

It's still hard for Eggsy to wrap his head around being family, but he nods. "Yeah... Family." 

"That's not a bad thing, is it?" Roxy asks. 

"No, it's not. It's just... I've lost all the rest of my family. I don't wanna lose any more..." he mumbles, sitting down on their stepping stool. 

"You're not going to lose us," she declares confidently as she sits next to us. "I bet it's scary and all, but I promise we're here to say. Daddy and Papa... well they won't tell me what they really do, but I know it's really dangerous, and they still come back home to me every time. So they'll come back home for you, too." 

"You think so?" 

"I know so." 

They have to go down to dinner soon after, lest they rouse any suspicions. Eggsy's mood is vastly improved as he sits to eat. It's just lovely thinking of Charlie having dinner with his parents while trying to wave off their inevitable concern for whatever bruises and scratches Roxy had left him with. Charlie's just a dumb rich kid. Eggsy had known that all along and he'd let it bother him too much. He's glad Roxy beat him up. It had left Eggsy with a litlte more confidence that Charlie really was just an outlier and that not everyone thinks he's a hopeless outsider. Plus, it doesn't hurt that JB is running around under the table, nuzzling at their heels and begging for scraps. 

 

"You seem much better off than when I left this morning," James comments. "Must have been a good day, huh?" 

Eggsy nods. "It was, yeah. But it's also 'cause I've got a really great sister now."

 

  
                                                                                                                -----

 

Roxy beat Charlie up on a Friday and so, Eggsy gets another two days to build up his courage before he has to see Charlie again. In a way, the time just makes him more nervous. It just increases his anxiety and makes him run over a million scenarios in his head of how Charlie might get his revenge come Monday. When the boy stalks over to them on Monday morning before homeroom, Eggsy's almost sure he's going to crack again. But before he can, Roxy reaches over and grabs his hand tight, a reminder that she's still right there with him and they'll be all right. 

"Back in school again? I thought we'd finally convinced you to go back where you came from," Charlie sneers. 

Eggsy lets himself be calmed by Roxy's hand in his. (Not to mention, the faded discoloring still around Charlie's eye.) "Shove off, Charlie. I'm not in the mood to deal with you today. Or ever, actually." 

"Figures," Charlie scoffs. "Scum like you - toss some spare change at their feet and then they've got attitudes." 

Eggsy's biting back a response as Roxy just walks ahead and pushes around Charlie. "Don't think I won't give you another bruised eye," she threatens. Once she and Eggsy are far enough away from Charlie, she turns to Eggsy. "I've got to get to my own room now. Oh! But one of my friends from riding - Amelia - is in your year and she told me to tell you that you can sit with her in lunch if you want. Instead of sitting off in a corner." Roxy goes on to rattle a long description of Amelia and what she looks like before giving Eggsy a cheery goobye and leaving for her homeroom. 

Come lunch time, Eggsy does his best to remember what Roxy told him. Eventually, he spots a girl who looks like she might fit the bill and shyly makes his way over to her. "Um... excuse me? Are you Roxy's friend?" 

Amelia beams up at him and nods as she gestures for Eggsy to sit down across from her. "Yeah! You must be her new brother, right?" As Eggsy sits, she turns to the rest of her friends to introduce him. "Everyone, Roxy's brother, so he's cool with us. It's... Eggy, was it?" 

"Um, no. It's Eggsy. Eggsy Unwin. Though... Well, I suppose I'm a Morton-Spencer now." And finally, Eggsy can say he feels nothing but pride to be such.

 

 

 

                                                                                                    EPILOGUE

When Eggsy's ninth birthday rolled around, it was just a few weeks shy of it having been a whole year since he had moved in with James and Alistair. Or Dad and Papa, as he often called them these days. Of course, that almost meant it was just a few weeks sky of the anniversary of having lost his mother and the worst couple of weeks of his young life, but Eggsy preferred not to dwell on that. Instead, of the life he'd lost, Eggsy preferred to think of everything he'd gained. 

His dads were taking advantage of his birthday to do some celebrating of their own, of having been fathers to their beloved son for nearly a whole year now. So as Eggsy helped to decorate their living room and backyard, it wasn't just 'Happy Birthday' banners he put up, but also a few anniversary signs that James had amended by crossing out the 'wedding' and replacing it with 'adoption', something he thought himself quite funny for. 

"You could help, y'know," Eggsy called over his shoulder as he tacked up one of said signs to the kitchen door. Gently, he teased, "Worst dad ever, just sitting there and leaving his son to decorate for his very own birthday." 

James looked up from where he'd been perusing through one of their photo albums - and God, had they taken plenty of pictures. It seemed they were intent on having as many photos of Eggsy in their albums as of Roxy, despite the significant time difference in having been in their households. JB was laying at James' feet as the man browsed, dozing away. The pug had grown fat and lazy in the last year, but Eggsy didn't mind. He loved him all the same, even if they weren't playing as much fetch as he'd originally envisioned. 

"Oh, you're right. You should have kept your receipt to send me back," James teased back. He closed the book and stood up, going to help Eggsy in putting up the signs and banners. "I was just reminiscing. I can hardly believe we've had you all that time. Feels like barely yesterday you first moved in and were trashing your room in frustrated rebellion." 

Eggsy winced. He was nine now, so of course he felt quite wise and looking back at little eight year old him and his tantrums was awfully embarrassing. "Yeah. I know. Been a great year, though, innit?" 

"Oh, the best." James nodded. 

Eggsy smiled at him, at the man who'd quickly become his father once Eggsy let him, and nodded. "Can't think of any other family I'd rather have joined."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, can't believe it finally ended! Thanks everyone for sticking with me through the whole thing, even when the times it took me literal months to update! <3 I hope it's been as enjoyable to read as it was to write. I suppose this means I'll be starting something new very soon ;)

**Author's Note:**

> I can be found over on Tumblr at [dilestrade](http://dilestrade.tumblr.com/) or [unwins-boy](http://unwins-boy.tumblr.com/) for prompts, chatting, questions, and whatnot


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